Non Christmas day traditions

[Tootsietoes]

My oldest will be 3 almost 4 by Christmas so really want to start building our family traditions and the excitement of Christmas.

I've been lurking in this area for a while and read lots of threads old & new but curious to know what stuff do you and your families do that's festive to celebrate Christmas?

Of course there will be a making Christmas card and maybe a few decorations but that will be early December so we can send to family.
Putting up the tree and visiting santa are a given but I don't know what else to do that won't cost the earth (like lots we're affected by covid so want to plan ahead).

Last year there was a wonderland type attraction set up but would be £60 for 2 adult and 2 under 3 to get in and we couldn't justify that cost when the kids were so young. We had friends go who said it was good for kids but very pricey for refreshments and the souvenirs etc and only last an hr.

We have a fill your own advent calendar which I fill with mainly activities rather than chocolate as dd has never been that much into chocolate.

We do a drive to see the best lights nearby. This year I am thinking of turning this into a treasure hunt

Evening walk around our estate to choose the best decorated house

Supermarket trip to pick a food bank donation

We have a beautiful pop up version of the Night before Christmas which we read

A local church service

This year dd wants jesus to have a birthday cake so 2 day's activity will be designing the cake

We watch Arthur Christmas every Christmas Eve. DS is 15 this year but still wants to watch it.

Make paper chains & salt dough ornaments for the tree? Really cheap and fun to do. You could do one every year as keepsakes to look back on.

Bake biscuits for Santa - or gingerbread house / men.

Oh and one day we make presents for family eh one year we painted tea towels, one year home infused vodka, Christmas puddings, fudge etc

I suggest you start the tradition of thinking about other people and not spending money on landfill.

I suggest you start the tradition of thinking about other people and not spending money on landfill.

MN is full of utter joy today isn't it. I must have missed the bit where the OP asked how much plastic tat she can buy between now and December.

MN is full of utter joy today isn't it. I must have missed the bit where the OP asked how much plastic tat she can buy between now and December.
Howling!

Op, we watch a film every Xmas eve after having baths and putting on fresh pj's. Then dh and I put DS to bed and have a mix of party picky bits as our evening food with cheese and crackers.
Ds still young though and ill be pregnant over Xmas this year so the traditions are just beginning. Baking is top of the list but I'm a keen Baker and DS loves 'helping'

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone some ideas I will definitely look at doing. Salt dough is top of my idea lists, then wrap them and keep safe so I can keep them all.
Making presents are a good idea, something we'd need to do early December so I have time for posting.

Previous to kids we didn't really have Christmas traditions or Christmas really we live away from extended family and dh works, Christmas eve (usually til late) and Christmas day and I used to work boxing day. So feel a bit detached to what is festive. Since kids we now spread Christmas day over two days so dh can join us for Christmas Dinner etc but prior to the day we only really put up the tree and saw santa for 2 traumatic for a photo, last year oldest was 2 and "helped" make a decoration and youngest was 1 so didn't have a clue.

I definitely don't intend to have a landfill named after me, I'm looking for ideas of activities to do rather than things to buy.

A trip to a traditional old cinema to watch a Christmas movie,
Choose a new decoration each for the tree on a day out,
Hot chocolate and marshmallows when the trees been put up.

think about it, though between howls. Each home in the land " does without" plastic goblins, designer crackers,cranberry sauce.....take your pick and donates the £ 2.00.

Result £120,000,000 which earns interest , which could do a lot.

When I was a child we always went for a walk in the afternoon once we had eaten. Looking back I can see it as a lovely thing to do ( helped walk your big lunch off , got some fresh air / exercise , out in nature , great family activity )
It wasn't miles and miles , and usually to our local wood. We were probably out 1 - 2 hrs max.

Very much not accusing you of landfill but one of my friend’s Christmas traditions is her kids pick out some toys they don’t play with anymore to give to charity (we don’t do this because DS is only 18 months!).

Advent calendar is a good one. This year we’re going to have a small thing to unwrap each day which will build up into a Christmassy scene for our mantelpiece.

Christingle at a local church would be nice too.

In our family I make mincemeat and pastry early in December, and then dh makes mince pies with the dc. Usually he makes a few trays with each dc, and we freeze them in batches.

Our tree presents are from people, only the stocking presents are from FC. When we put the stockings out each dc chooses something of theirs to put in the stocking together with a little bag of homemade mince pies, 'for Father Christmas to take to children who don't have family to give them presents and make mince pies with them'. I secretly take the dc's donations to the charity shop after Xmas.

A trip to a traditional old cinema to watch a Christmas movie,

This would be lovely & nostalgic for me and DH, but sadly they're all gone around here - or been converted to other uses. Such a shame because they had far more character than the multiplexes.

Maybe we should all club together and buy a MN traditional cinema .

We're going to try and make our Christmas as plastic free as possible this year. DS doesn't get toys anymore and he's happy with money or game download vouchers. I'm happy with kindle vouchers. It's only DH and his Lego but at least that never gets binned .

Christmas light safari!

Get them bundled up after dark and take a walk (or drive, if there's nowt in your area) to look at the Christmas lights after dark. There's usually a few households nearby that go way ott. You could make it a scavenger hunt type thing... Who can spot a santa, a reindeer, a star etc.

We have a trip to a garden centre to choose a new bauble each. I have 2 baubles with the kids names which hang either side of the fireplace on a garland. They open up so i put sweets in those from time to time throughout December. They love checking to see if any have appeared. We have a drive to look at lights and xmas eve is always Christingle and home to a xmas ham and buffet. The elves drop a box off with new PJs, xmas puzzle book and snacks.

Helping my local church make and distribute Christingle oranges for their Christmas Eve service.
Making a big batch of cakes/mince pies/biscuits to give away to neighbours, friends and local shopkeepers.
Christmas Haggis instead of a roast meat joint.
We make our own felt party hats and crackers to reduce plastic tat.
We make a new decoration each year for the tree, which means it generally looks like Christmas threw up all over it.

I will definitely be doing the old toy to charity shop thing. Love the idea of the cinema but maybe not this year might do that next year when youngest is 3.

I don't want to fill December full of activities as normal life still goes on but would like to do at least one big thing a week. By big I mean take a few hours to complete so decorations followed by a movie will be made a big deal.

@randomer I hope this gives you peace. Around 5 years ago I decided I would do a full Christmas dinner for dh finishing work and bought a box of crackers, I'm sure I did make the dinner but we forgot to pull a cracker. Kept the box and every year since I announce our crackers are sorted and we still haven't opened the box yet.
We also don't buy cranberry sauce

At some point on Xmas Eve before bed the elves sneak into the house & leave new PJ's wrapped up on the bed. This started age 2.5 and still happens! The wrapping paper is used exclusively for this and the toys next day from Santa - it can't be seen anywhere else in the house or on any presents from family or friends. This is a hint that the elves checked the list and have made sure Santa will definitely visit...as long as no one is awake when he flies by. It's just a silly embellishment to the story but has always made DD get to bed on time.

Think this year I will introduce Christmas eve new pyjamas etc we have a few Christmas books are so far aren't age appropriate but think eldest will sit for it this year so might get a box or something with the book new pyjamas each and some snacks for after their early bath so we can watch a film after before leaving a snack for santa and then off to bed.

We make wrapping paper, brown paper with Christmas shapes painted on with potato cut outs....

no peace here for me, we haven't even had the shortest day yet and we are fast forwarding to the spendfest. Ah well.

No one is on fast forward. I'm just getting some ideas, dh works ALOT over Christmas so want to make a point of being prepared for family activities, with the exclusions of postage I plan on keeping costs down. Bit like when seasonal clothes go on sale I buy next size stuff for my kids but I'm not wishing a year away.

ignore me ( I'm sure you have) I'm being vile.

Our family traditions include:

• putting the lyrics to a Christmas song in each day of the advent calendar (we have one with little drawers). Sometimes carols, sometimes pop Christmas classics. Then have a good sing song. The DC weren't very interested when they were toddlers, but would listen while they ate their chocolate. Now they are 4 and 6 they join in. Listening to our 4yo doing a deep voice and singing driving home for Christmas is hilarious!
• make a gingerbread house. They love sticking on the sweets and covering it with icing. At some point after Christmas day I get fed up with looking at it and let the DC eat the whole thing
• On Christmas eve we go to a Christingle or Crib service in the afternoon. My favourite bit is when they turn the lights off and we all sing Away in a Manger by candlelight (I always get teary). That seems to calm the DC down which is always welcome!
• Hiding baby Jesus. We have a wooden toy nativity which we set up on December 1st but baby Jesus is wrapped up like a parcel and hidden somewhere in the house and the DC have to find him. He is laid (still wrapped up) in the manger, but then the next morning he is hidden again. The DC really get into the acting and make a show of looking in the manger and then calling "Muuu-uum, that naughty Jesus has gone missing again" On Christmas Eve after the Christingle service we unwrap him and let him stay in the manger.
• Hanging up dried orange slices, cinnamon sticks and star anise in the trees in our front garden.

-Putting a battery operated candle in the window to "burn" through the night on Christmas Eve. Weirdly the DC are almost as excited about waking up to this as they are their stockings (although the stockings take over pretty quickly).